Sakae District

Directions - Hop on the trusty Subway at Nagoya station and get a 200 Yen ticket from the machine.  Get onto the Yellow line (Higashiyama line) and go in the direction of Sakae/Fushimi.  From Nagoya station its 2 stops on the subway.  If you have any problems, get lost, need help, check out our handy Japanese phrase book.  When you arrive, exiting at any one of the 20 or so exits will put you in amongst the crowds, however exits 3-10 are the most central.

Oasis 21

A curious yet spectacular piece of architecture located in the heart of Sakae across from the famous 'TV Tower'.  A glass tank ceiling with flowing water covers the shops and events arena down below, and catches your attention immediately as you approach the unique construction.  There are around 8-12 restaurants located on the ground floor serving a reasonable selection of Japanese cuisine.  There is also a cafe and outdoor tables and chairs to sit and relax whilst gazing at whatever quirky promotional event is being held at the time.  You will find some cute clothes shops, a homeware boutique and also an interesting "Ghibli studio" shop, stocking stuffed toys, key-rings and stationary from the popular animaton series and characters.  Most importantly though, the best best tourist information office in Nagoya can be found here (Ground floor - cannot be missed).  A variety of events pamphlets and maps are available in English, Chinese, Korean and Portugese as well as helpful staff who speak English. Oasis 21 Tourist Information.

Oasis 21 - A brand new,space-age designed shopping centre in Sakae central district

Sunshine Sakae

More aesthetically pleasing than it is a "must visit" shopping centre, but it will catch your eye when you walk past it.  The shops inside the centre are targeted at women with money, so for tourists on the hunt for a bargain, probably not where you need to go.  There is however a huge Ferris wheel attached to the side of the building which is a perfect photo opportunity at night.

Underground Shopping - Sakae

Sakae and Nagoya station for that matter, have huge underground shopping areas that conveniently links to the subway lines and provide respite from the hot city sun in July /August.  During the sale season the area you'll be competing with hundreds of people for discounts of up to 75%.  Aside from the clothes stores you'll find numerous restaurants, cafes and speciality cake shops / bakeries, drug store and book shops around.  Underground In Sakae, one of areas well stocked, foreign food shops by the name of 'Yamaya' can be found only a couple of minutes walk from centre. Click here to find out more....

Mitsukoshi-Sakae / Parco-Sakae

Right on the corner of the busiest intersection in Sakae, Mitsukoshi can be found very easily indeed.  Mitsukoshi, a major international department with it's headquarters in Tokyo,  specialises in clothes and cosmetics.  Japan is famous for it stnadard of service and shop presentation so just walking around and taking in the atmophere and smiley service can be resfreshing.  There is good selection of restaurants on the 9th floor, handy especially when restaurnat hunting in a foreign country can be frustrating.  Shops stay open until 7:30pm with restaurants finishing at 8pm.

Parco is is recognised as the coolest (but NOT the cheapest) place to go shopping for clothes in Nagoya.  It can be found by walking down past Mitsukoshi for 3-4 minutes (heading south towards Osu Kannon.  It comprises of 3 buildings, East, South and West with a walkway linking the floors on the 2nd and 7th levels.  The South building is considered the most expensive and upper class of the three buildings, with the East being closer to most peoples budget.  A floor guide in English can be accessed by clicking here.  For restaurants, head to the West building on floors 7 and 8.  Shops are open from 10am-9pm with restaurants from 11am-1030pm.

Nadya Park / Loft

For those who have been around Nagoya / Gifu for more than 3 month will have been to 'Loft' at one point or another.  It's a department store with a difference, located insdie the 'Nadya park' building, stocking all kinds of novelty items, toys, clothes, furniture and homeware  - all with a twist of funk and style.  Whatever your sense of fashion and style maybe, rest assured, you'll will probably find something to your liking here.  A great place for souvenirs too as you can find cute, funny and original gifts that are unique to Japan and can only be found in Loft.  Nadya park also houses a 'Kinokuniya' bookstore on the 6th floor, which has a pretty good selection of English books and a small cafe.  The Nadya park Loft store houses 6 floors and a basement, and is located in Sakae only a couple of minutes from Parco and five minutes walk from Sakae station.  The closest station is Yaba-cho (on the purple Meijo line) in between Sakae and Kamimaezu, alhough if you are in Sakae its not worth using the subway.  From the intersection of UFJ bank,Tiffany's and Mitsukoshi walk in the direction of Parco which means walking away from Tiffany's with Mitsukoshi on your left.  Go past HMV (on your right), Zara and Gucci and turn right immediately after the Adidas shop. Go past Citibank (on your right) and about 50 metres up the road you will see the very grand looking 'Nadya Park' building on your left.  Loft is open from 11am-8pm and closed 1st & 3rd Tues of the month.

Osu Kannon / Kamimaezu

Osu is an excellent place to shop especially if you're on a budget or your fashion taste is a little more funky.  Located within minutes of Sakae, both Kamimaezu and Osu Kannon have subways stops on the Meijo line (purple one).  In Osu  you'll find a maze like, shop-lined, undercover shopping precinct that works it's way around the Osu area.  Second hand clothes shops are very popular in Osu and, if they're not second hand then they are cheap.  Compared with Sakae, Osu is much less a catwalk-style atmosphere, and the general feel of the area reflects how shopping used to be in Nagoya (before the huge department stores were built).  There are also some excellent restaurants and cafes around for when you need break from the shops.  All in all, an interesting and colourful area of Nagoya to spend a morning or afternoon.

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